Thread: Shave the neck

Hi, I have been using the straight razors for a month or two. I get an excellent long lasting shave on my face and chin. My neck is good to ok, but can still feel some stuble. Is there a way to get the neck perfect. Maybe it is best to settle for good. I tried shaving against the grain with distarous effects. Razor burn beyond all beliefe. Any tricks out there. I would like to get a perfect baby bottom shave all over. Thank you in advance for any possible help recieved

1) Make sure that the razor is really sharp.
2) STRETCH the skin
3) Flatten the blade a bit
That should get you a smooth neck-shave...

Now as for avoiding the razor burn, make sure you don't press the blade or scrape dry skin with the razor.

Of course it depends on how your hair grows but I've been shaving with a straight almost 3 years now and I still can't get as close on my neck as the rest. I've tried all kinds of crazy angles and its still not the same. I've figured out that the only way is to shave E-W and that is impossible with a normal straight without cutting my throat. Maybe someone with a huge neck can do it but I can't. I do have a tradition Japaneese straight and because it has a very short blade I can do it with that but that razor has other limitations of its own.

I've just accepted the fact that the shave on the neck will not be quite as close as the rest. Maybe others will chime in with some secret formula for success.

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

Of course it depends on how your hair grows but I've been shaving with a straight almost 3 years now and I still can't get as close on my neck as the rest. I've tried all kinds of crazy angles and its still not the same. I've figured out that the only way is to shave E-W and that is impossible with a normal straight without cutting my throat. Maybe someone with a huge neck can do it but I can't. I do have a tradition Japaneese straight and because it has a very short blade I can do it with that but that razor has other limitations of its own.

I've just accepted the fact that the shave on the neck will not be quite as close as the rest. Maybe others will chime in with some secret formula for success.

Do a clean up pass with a DE? (Pardon me for swearing!)

RT

Thats good stuff. Thanks for the replies.

I follow Randy's advice for now. I've only been using a straight for a month or two and I still follow-up with a DE. I feel like I'm cheating...

I have the same type of neck hair. I usually skip the with-the-grain pass, and do two passes against the grain. To prevent irritation I go slow and keep the blade very flat (the spine is either on the skin or within a half spine-widths of it).

Failing that, an Injector will clean it up better than a DE. I used to do this when I used a DE, never had to resort to it after switching to a straight.

east/west is not easy....try going diagonally from n/e-s/w on left side of neck ...on opp side n/w-se....make sure face is wet and lubed stretch skin use real light pressure on razor, narrow angle...smooth close neck shave...this should be second pass after n/s...many times if razor is sharp, you wont need 3rd pass against grain...

Just to clarify: The second against-the-grain pass isn't because the razor isn't sharp, it's because the razor wipes the lather off of a slightly wider swathe than it actually shaves, so I wind up with alternating vertical stripes of smooth skin and short stubble :-/ Re-lathering and doing another pass cleans this up -- the second pass is very quick because there isn't a whole lot left.

In the end, it's all about results. If you want that baby butt smooth shave, I don't consider it cheating or blasphemy to use another tool in the process. I know an E-W pass with a DE before the final S-N pass with a straight really helps achieve that shave for me.